Rod, I have to say that you sound like just about everyone I know who's serious about practice, including me. There are times, perhaps years, when it seems really difficult to actually just go sit. The only advice I'd give is that, as an exercise, commit to cutting through that stuff that comes up when you think of sitting. As soon as you notice it, just go sit, immediately. No excuses, no vacillation, let the chatter do what it wants but go sit. Even if it's for just two minutes or so. Don't get into having another cup of coffee first, or finishing what you're doing or whatever, just go get your ass on the cushion. And don't time the sitting, if you normally do that, just get on the cushion and allow yourself to sit for as long as you sit.
Alternatively, bring the target up close by reducing your sitting time, so that if you normally sit for half an hour say, sit for 20 minutes instead. As you noted - when finishing sitting, there's often a reluctance to stop. This way you stop sitting a little 'hungry' and you begin to make zazen less of a perceived chore. The other piece of advice I'd offer, is to try not to beat yourself up about sitting/not sitting, give yourself little zazen 'breaks', for example when you sit at your pc, or at a traffic light - take a few moments to just sit, or to be with your breathing and your posture. Keep it simple and keep it gentle. From what you wrote, it sounds like you're already doing this anyway. Then you're not only sitting regularly, you've also let it intermingle with your daily activity in a quite natural way. Lastly, be aware of the mind's tendency to look for strategies that work, and to approach life as something to be dealt with through such strategies and techniques - sitting may be seen as one such tool at times. The reality is that our plans and what happens are two different animals, so if you allow that and realize that no plan will work all the time, including one to be gentle with yourself, or to sit for even a few moments every day, it removes some of the pressure from the me and my sitting thing. Hope this is of use. Genryu [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> In low income neighborhoods, 84% do not own computers. At Network for Good, help bridge the Digital Divide! http://us.click.yahoo.com/hjtSRD/3MnJAA/i1hLAA/S27xlB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Current Book Discussion: Appreciate Your Life by Taizan Maezumi Roshi. New or used at: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1570622280/ref=ase_actionheroesc-20/002-4507763-9442460?v=glance&s=books> Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZenForum/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
